IL-1RA is a member of the interleukin 1 cytokine family. IL1Ra is secreted by various types of cells including immune cells, epithelial cells, and adipocytes, and is a natural inhibitor of the pro-inflammatory effect of IL1β. This protein inhibits the activities of interleukin 1, alpha (IL1A) and interleukin 1, beta (IL1B), and modulates a variety of interleukin 1 related immune and inflammatory responses. This gene and five other closely related cytokine genes form a gene cluster spanni

Glycogen Synthase (GS) is a key enzyme in the regulation of glycogen metabolism. GS catalyzes the incorporation of UDP-glucose incorporation into glycogen. The activity of glycogen synthase is regulated by hormonal stimuli (insulin, catecholamines and glucagons) and non-hormonal stimuli (blood glucose level and exercise). Two main isoforms of mammalian GS are designated as muscle (glycogen synthase 1) and liver (glycogen synthase 2). Most tissues express glycogen synthase 1, whereas glycoge

Protein kinase C (PKC) zeta is a member of the PKC family of serine/threonine kinases which are involved in a variety of cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation and secretion. Unlike the classical PKC isoenzymes which are calcium-dependent, PKC zeta exhibits a kinase activity which is independent of calcium and diacylglycerol but not of phosphatidylserine. Furthermore, it is insensitive to typical PKC inhibitors and cannot be activated by phorbol ester. Unlike the classical

Proteins of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family are involved in the breakdown of extracellular matrix in normal physiological processes, such as embryonic development, reproduction, and tissue remodeling, as well as in disease processes, such as arthritis and metastasis. Most MMP's are secreted as inactive proproteins which are activated when cleaved by extracellular proteinases. However, the enzyme encoded by this gene is activated intracellularly by furin within the constitutive secr

The steady state of protein tyrosyl phosphorylation in cells is regulated by the opposing action of tyrosine kinases and protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs). Several groups have independently identified a non transmembrane PTP, designated SHPTP1 (also known as PTP1C, HCP and SHP), which is primarily expressed in hematopoietic cells and characterized by the presence of two SH2 domains N terminal to the PTP domain. A second and much more widely expressed PTP with SH2 domains, SHPTP2 (also de

Modulation of the chromatin structure plays an important role in the regulation of transcription in eukaryotes. The nucleosome, made up of four core histone proteins (H2A, H2B, H3 and H4), is the primary building block of chromatin. The N-terminal tail of core histones undergoes different posttranslational modifications including acetylation, phosphorylation and methylation. These modifications occur in response to cell signal stimuli and have a direct effect on gene expression. In most spec